Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Stock Price Expected to Rise, UBS Group Analyst Says

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its price target boosted by UBS Group from $210.00 to $225.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $183.00 target price for the company. Wedbush upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.36.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of DRI opened at $199.92 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market cap of $23.42 billion, a PE ratio of 22.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. Darden Restaurants has a 12 month low of $135.87 and a 12 month high of $203.47. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $192.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $176.85.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80. The company had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.22 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.60 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.80%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently 64.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 15,783 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.03, for a total value of $2,888,762.49. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 46,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,472,092.64. This trade represents a 25.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total transaction of $1,546,437.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $766,948.30. This trade represents a 66.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 45,698 shares of company stock worth $8,536,729. 0.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 103.2% in the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

About Darden Restaurants

Darden Restaurants, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates full-service restaurants in the United States and Canada. It operates under Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze, Eddie V’s Prime Seafood, and Capital Burger brand names.